MHP-A News

TUESDAY, June 28, 2016 – A long-used drug called methylene blue may rev up activity in brain regions involved in short-term memory and attention, a small study suggests. Methylene blue has been used in medicine for more than a century, said Timothy Duong, the senior researcher on the study and a professor at the University of Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio. These days, he said, it's used to manage a condition called methemoglobinemia, where the blood cannot deliver enough oxygen to the body's tissues. It's also used to treat poisoning by cyanide or carbon monoxide. But evidence dating back to the 1970s suggests the drug may also enhance memory, in animals and humans, Duong said. In the new study, his team found that a single dose of methylene blue improved memory test performances by 13 healthy adults in a small, placebo-based clinical trial. Based on MRI brain scans, the ... Read more